The Washington Examiner reports that a local Missouri Democratic committee was just caught blocking two candidates from running as Democrats in the upcoming country election. 

The Missouri county where this is taking place is Jackson County. Located in the Kansas City area, it is the second-most populous county in Missouri.

The barred candidates

In its report, the Washington Examiner identifies two candidates whom the local Missouri Democratic committee has barred from running as Democratic candidates. One is Roberta Gough and the other is Brenda Allen.

The 84-year-old Gough is a military veteran and a transgender woman who has run in five elections in Missouri since 2010. Gough ran twice as a Republican and three times as a Democrat. This time around, Gough was looking to run as a Democrat but has been blocked from doing so.

The Washington Examiner provides less information on Allen other than that she too was looking to run as a Democrat in the upcoming county election but has been stopped from doing so by the local Democratic committee.

The “why?”

In Allen’s case, she has been barred by the local Democratic committee from running as a Democrat because she has previously contributed “a little here and a little there” to Republican candidates.

“If that’s their rule, then I guess that’s their rule,” Allen said.

The committee has barred Gough from running as a Democrat, on the other hand, because Gough has run as a Republican candidate in the past. Accordingly, the committee has accused Gough of trying to “manipulate voters and the electoral process.”

Gough has taken issue with this explanation pointing to such figures as Sen. Susan Collins (D-ME) and Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) who both, despite being Republicans, often vote with Democrats. Given this Gough asked whether they are manipulating voters.

Gough also compared the local Democratic committee’s ability to bar candidates from running as Democrats to the likes of Communist China, where Gough said, “the party determines the candidate, and, of course, there’s only one candidate.” Gough added, “it’s kind of like that in Missouri — the party determines who the candidate is going to be, not the voters.”

The party of exclusivity

The Jackson County Democratic Committee is just the latest proof that, contrary to what Democrats say, they, more and more, are the party of exclusivity, not inclusivity.

Both Allen and Gough have decided to refile as Republican candidates.